An Hyatt affiliate has entered into an agreement with Bahagia Investment Corporation (Malaysia) to manage the Grand Hyatt Kuala Lumpur. The hotel is already under construction and is expected to open in 2012.
Grand Hyatt Kuala Lumpur will be part of a mixed use complex. The hotel, occupying floors 17 through 39 of the property, will feature 412 guest rooms, including 42 suites and will offer over 33,000 square feet of meeting and event space, a 228-seat café, a 298-seat specialty restaurant with multiple cuisines, a 74-seat Sky Lobby Lounge, a 102-seat poolside restaurant and bar, a spa with 11 treatment rooms, and a swimming pool.
Grand Hyatt Kuala Lumpur will be located in the Golden Triangle area of Kuala Lumpur, in a prime location on Jalan Pinang road close to the Kuala Lumpur City Centre (“KLCC”) and the iconic Petronas Towers. It is in close proximity to fashion hubs and business centers, museums, memorials and galleries, and within driving distance of natural preserves.
Kuala Lumpur is an internationally recognized tourist and business destination. With a metropolitan population of approximately 7.2 million, it is the largest city in Malaysia and a key leisure location. Many of Malaysia’s major commercial banks and financial institutions are headquartered in Kuala Lumpur, as are many Malaysian companies, making it an international gateway city.
“In 2010, Malaysia attracted over 24.5 million tourists – rivaling that of countries such as Mexico, Germany and Turkey,” said Willi Martin, area vice president, Southeast Asia, Hyatt Hotels and Resorts. “We see Grand Hyatt Kuala Lumpur as a remarkable opportunity to expand the presence of the Hyatt brand into a principal city in the rapidly emerging Southeast Asia market.”
There are currently 51 Hyatt-branded hotels in Asia Pacific and the Grand Hyatt Kuala Lumpur will join the two existing Hyatt-branded hotels in Malaysia: Hyatt Regency Kinabalu and Hyatt Regency Kuantan Resort.
There are 16 other Grand Hyatt hotels in the region’s key gateway cities and destination resorts, including Bali, Bangkok, Beijing, Jakarta, Seoul, Shanghai, Singapore, and Tokyo.
Source : AsiaTravelTips
[tags : malaysiahotelnews hotels malaysia resorts news travel tourism travel tourism news]
Showing posts with label hyatt. Show all posts
Showing posts with label hyatt. Show all posts
Wednesday, June 15, 2011
Wednesday, February 16, 2011
KL Convention Centre Expands
THE KUALA Lumpur Convention Centre (KLCC) has finally been given the green light to expand its facilities after a four-year wait, giving the centre a 10,000m² boost that is expected to generate a 40 per cent increase in revenue when completed by end-2013.
General manager Peter Brokenshire said the centre would now be able to host events with over 6,000 delegates and grow its conference business from a 25 per cent share of all events to 30 to 40 per cent.
Construction plans will be finalised in April and works are likely to begin in the last quarter this year.
KLCC's expansion is part of the Malaysian government's Greater Kuala Lumpur Development Plan, which will see the construction of a 2km pedestrian walkway linking major places of interest, hotels and KLCC, as well as the addition of rooms in the city. Projects include new properties such as the 450-key The Grand Hyatt Kuala Lumpur and hotel expansions like the one by 322-key Impiana Hotel to add 180 rooms.
Phase one, a 142m elevated and air-conditioned walkway linking KLCC to Impiana Hotel, has been completed. The second phase will extend the walkway from the junction of Jalan Pinang/Kia Peng to Jalan Raja Chulan, stretching 42km.
Construction plans will be finalised in April and works are likely to begin in the last quarter this year.
KLCC's expansion is part of the Malaysian government's Greater Kuala Lumpur Development Plan, which will see the construction of a 2km pedestrian walkway linking major places of interest, hotels and KLCC, as well as the addition of rooms in the city. Projects include new properties such as the 450-key The Grand Hyatt Kuala Lumpur and hotel expansions like the one by 322-key Impiana Hotel to add 180 rooms.
Phase one, a 142m elevated and air-conditioned walkway linking KLCC to Impiana Hotel, has been completed. The second phase will extend the walkway from the junction of Jalan Pinang/Kia Peng to Jalan Raja Chulan, stretching 42km.
Source : TTG
[tags : malaysiahotelnews hotels malaysia resorts news travel tourism travel tourism news]
Tuesday, September 14, 2010
Hyatt Hotels and iPads
Enhancing guest services globally with iPad.
For over 50 years, Hyatt Hotels & Resorts have aimed to make guests feel more than welcome by providing amenities and services that meet their needs as quickly and directly as possible. With iPad, Hyatt now has the ideal platform to deliver the kind of seamless guest services the company prides itself on — not to mention a powerful, portable business tool for executives in Hyatt’s corporate headquarters.
For over 50 years, Hyatt Hotels & Resorts have aimed to make guests feel more than welcome by providing amenities and services that meet their needs as quickly and directly as possible. With iPad, Hyatt now has the ideal platform to deliver the kind of seamless guest services the company prides itself on — not to mention a powerful, portable business tool for executives in Hyatt’s corporate headquarters.
“We’re all about home away from home,” says John Prusnick, Director of IT Innovation & Strategy for Hyatt Hotels & Resorts. “We’re also all about ‘high touch,’ meaning the interaction with the guest. We’re enabling that with iPad. The combination of the two has been very powerful for us to reach that operational vision.”
From Hyatt’s Chicago headquarters to individual properties throughout the world, iPad is changing the way this hotel empire does business. Features like instant-on power, fast Internet access, and a large, easy-to-use onscreen keyboard make iPad a valuable contributor in meetings — and many Hyatt executives now take iPads on business trips in place of laptops.
With iPad, Hyatt managers have an immediate, full-size view of their email, contacts, calendars, financial data, and other business resources wherever they are. “You can write up notes during a meeting, automatically make a PDF, and email it,” says John Wallis, Hyatt Hotels Corporation's Global Head, Marketing & Brand Strategy. “In our office, iPad has already become part and parcel of the way we do business.”
“I don’t carry my diary anymore,” adds Harmit Singh, Hyatt Hotels Corporation’s Chief Financial Officer. “I don’t carry a calculator. I used to subscribe to all the journals: the Wall Street Journal, the Financial Times. That’s all disappeared. It’s all on iPad."
Boardroom to Guest Room
With hundreds of iPads already in employees’ hands and thousands more in the works, Hyatt keeps finding new ways to use iPad to streamline operations. Plans are now underway to deploy iPad throughout the organization, enhancing everything from registration to in-room services.
“We’re looking at ways to make things simpler for business travelers,” Singh says. “Making check-in easier after a flight or a long day’s work, making it easy to access the Internet.”
When guests walk into Hyatt’s boutique-style Andaz hotels, they’ll be greeted by hotel staff with iPads. “We can swipe your credit card, capture your signature, and check you into the hotel,” Prusnick explains. “We even have the ability on iPad to encode your key so you can go directly into your room.”
When guests walk into Hyatt’s boutique-style Andaz hotels, they’ll be greeted by hotel staff with iPads. “We can swipe your credit card, capture your signature, and check you into the hotel,” Prusnick explains. “We even have the ability on iPad to encode your key so you can go directly into your room.”
Hyatt is also developing iPad-accessible apps that allow guests to order room service, view hotel amenities, review charges, and check out. “Business travelers are bringing their own iPads on trips,” says Prusnick. “We want to enhance their experience and allow them to manage their stay, leveraging iPad.”
Guest Services Go Mobile
The portability, large screen, and long battery life of iPad make it uniquely suited to the round-the-clock, perpetual-motion world of hospitality. “Imagine a large convention center hotel where there are 1000 people wanting to check out,” says Prusnick. “Now we’re able to empower hotel staff with iPads and allow them to quickly and easily check out guests.”
iPad is also a natural fit for the concierge staff, he notes: “They’re showing guests how to get to restaurants or the theater, and showing them the capabilities of the hotel. If guests want to see what the spa looks like or book a golf tee time, they use iPad.”
And for Hyatt’s sales team, iPad has been transformative. Rather than carrying bulky portfolios, they can show potential clients crisp digital images on iPad, or even display videos of property highlights. “It’s a great tool to sell the hotel,” Wallis says. “Especially in this industry, where you’ve got to show bedrooms, banquet space, all the things we have to offer guests.”
Secure and Simple
Secure and Simple
For the IT staff, supporting iPad has been a straightforward process requiring no formal user training. Using the same infrastructure and messaging platform Hyatt has already established for iPhone, users simply enter their account information and immediately begin using the device.
“We use Lotus Traveler as the core platform to integrate with our messaging collaboration system, Lotus Notes — and users have full access to our VPN infrastructure,” says Prusnick.
“We use Lotus Traveler as the core platform to integrate with our messaging collaboration system, Lotus Notes — and users have full access to our VPN infrastructure,” says Prusnick.
“Through the Exchange ActiveSync technology enabled within iPad, we’re able to get instant synchronization of mail, contacts, and calendars without any IT involvement.”
Another non-issue is security. “Hyatt is confident that iPad meets security requirements,” Prusnick states. “It’s fast, it’s secure, and it’s easy to use. iPad has integrated Cisco IPsec, so we can securely authenticate users into the environment.”
Up and Running
Once the devices are activated, users can expand the capabilities of their iPads by downloading business apps such as Keynote, Documents To Go, and Dropbox from the App Store. “With the App Store and the iOS platform, users can find and implement their own solutions without IT intervention,” says Prusnick.
From Hyatt’s headquarters to individual properties throughout the world, iPad is changing the way this company does business. “With iPad, the interaction between the guest and ourselves is now seamless,” Wallis says. “iPad has changed our world forever.”
Source : Apple.com
Source : Apple.com
Thursday, November 05, 2009
Hyatt Hotels raises $950 million in IPO
There's talk of infighting among its founder's heirs and a sluggish appetite for hotel reservations around the globe. But Hyatt Hotels Corp. shares are set to begin trading Thursday now that the company raised $950 million in its initial public offering.
Questions had lingered about whether investors would feel confident enough to snatch up the 38 million shares of the iconic hotel chain that were offered. Among the issues facing the company are disputes between members of the wealthy Pritzker family, the largest holders of Hyatt stock with an 85 percent stake in the Chicago company.
"One thing Wall Street does not like is controversy," said John Fitzgibbon, founder of IPOScoop.
Proceeds from the sale - which was priced late Wednesday at $25 each, near the top end of the $23 to $26 range - will go almost entirely to the family, who will remain in control of the company with about two-thirds of outstanding shares and three-quarters of the shareholder voting power.
The board will include two family members, too: Executive Chairman Thomas J. Pritzker and his cousin Penny Pritzker.
"That basically makes the people that buy into it a junior, silent partner," Fitzgibbon said.
Hyatt won't receive any proceeds from the IPO.
Squabbling among Pritzker heirs, influential but private figures in Chicago's philanthropic, business and political circles, began shortly after patriarch Jay Pritzker's death a decade ago.
Among the contentions are allegations that family members shortchanged trust funds or mishandled the clan's hefty financial legacy and business interests.
The family also has feuded over how Thomas Pritzker administered various family trusts and the dual class structure of Hyatt stock, which gives the family 10 votes per share.
"Disputes ... among Pritzker family members and the trustees of the Pritzker family trusts may result in significant distractions to our management, disrupt our business, have a negative effect on the trading price of our ... common stock," Hyatt cautioned in a regulatory filing last month outlining a series of risks faced by the company when it become publicly traded.
Executives also noted any such problems could heap negative publicity on Hyatt and the family.
A Hyatt spokesman declined to comment.
On top of worries about the family, there's the recession that's kept hotel beds empty as both business and leisure travelers stay home. To compensate, companies - particularly high-end hotels whose rooms used to command top dollar - are slashing prices and offering amenities to woo guests.
"The timing probably isn't the best," said Morningstar hotel analyst Michelle Chang. "I think it's more of a way for the family to sell some of their interest, rather than it being a strategic move for the company necessarily."
So far, discounts have helped occupancy stabilize, but profit, revenue and a key performance measure of revenue for each available room is down dramatically at the biggest chains.
Hyatt said its revenue per available room sank 22 percent for the first nine months of the year while overall revenue fell 17 percent to $2.44 billion for the period ending Sept. 30. Its nine-month loss was $31 million, compared with a profit of $310 million last year.
The finicky IPO market has caused heartache for some companies who've been forced to price shares below expectations. But Hyatt's shares priced slightly above the midpoint of its expected range.
Any money raised from a 5.7 million-share overallotment option designated for underwriters - about $142.5 million - would go back to the company and be used for capital expenditures such as building and construction.
Goldman Sachs & Co. is the lead bookrunning manager, and Deutsche Bank Securities and JPMorgan Securities also are underwriting the deal. Shares will trade under the ticker "H" on the New York Stock Exchange on Thursday.
Hyatt was founded in 1957 by Jay Pritzker and first taken public in 1962, but has been privately held for more than 25 years.
It owns, operates, manages or franchises 415 Hyatt-branded properties, including the Hyatt, Park Hyatt, Hyatt Regency and Grand Hyatt chains, in 45 countries.
Source : STAR
[tags : malaysiahotelnews hotels malaysia resorts news travel tourism travel tourism news]
Questions had lingered about whether investors would feel confident enough to snatch up the 38 million shares of the iconic hotel chain that were offered. Among the issues facing the company are disputes between members of the wealthy Pritzker family, the largest holders of Hyatt stock with an 85 percent stake in the Chicago company.
"One thing Wall Street does not like is controversy," said John Fitzgibbon, founder of IPOScoop.
Proceeds from the sale - which was priced late Wednesday at $25 each, near the top end of the $23 to $26 range - will go almost entirely to the family, who will remain in control of the company with about two-thirds of outstanding shares and three-quarters of the shareholder voting power.
The board will include two family members, too: Executive Chairman Thomas J. Pritzker and his cousin Penny Pritzker.
"That basically makes the people that buy into it a junior, silent partner," Fitzgibbon said.
Hyatt won't receive any proceeds from the IPO.
Squabbling among Pritzker heirs, influential but private figures in Chicago's philanthropic, business and political circles, began shortly after patriarch Jay Pritzker's death a decade ago.
Among the contentions are allegations that family members shortchanged trust funds or mishandled the clan's hefty financial legacy and business interests.
The family also has feuded over how Thomas Pritzker administered various family trusts and the dual class structure of Hyatt stock, which gives the family 10 votes per share.
"Disputes ... among Pritzker family members and the trustees of the Pritzker family trusts may result in significant distractions to our management, disrupt our business, have a negative effect on the trading price of our ... common stock," Hyatt cautioned in a regulatory filing last month outlining a series of risks faced by the company when it become publicly traded.
Executives also noted any such problems could heap negative publicity on Hyatt and the family.
A Hyatt spokesman declined to comment.
On top of worries about the family, there's the recession that's kept hotel beds empty as both business and leisure travelers stay home. To compensate, companies - particularly high-end hotels whose rooms used to command top dollar - are slashing prices and offering amenities to woo guests.
"The timing probably isn't the best," said Morningstar hotel analyst Michelle Chang. "I think it's more of a way for the family to sell some of their interest, rather than it being a strategic move for the company necessarily."
So far, discounts have helped occupancy stabilize, but profit, revenue and a key performance measure of revenue for each available room is down dramatically at the biggest chains.
Hyatt said its revenue per available room sank 22 percent for the first nine months of the year while overall revenue fell 17 percent to $2.44 billion for the period ending Sept. 30. Its nine-month loss was $31 million, compared with a profit of $310 million last year.
The finicky IPO market has caused heartache for some companies who've been forced to price shares below expectations. But Hyatt's shares priced slightly above the midpoint of its expected range.
Any money raised from a 5.7 million-share overallotment option designated for underwriters - about $142.5 million - would go back to the company and be used for capital expenditures such as building and construction.
Goldman Sachs & Co. is the lead bookrunning manager, and Deutsche Bank Securities and JPMorgan Securities also are underwriting the deal. Shares will trade under the ticker "H" on the New York Stock Exchange on Thursday.
Hyatt was founded in 1957 by Jay Pritzker and first taken public in 1962, but has been privately held for more than 25 years.
It owns, operates, manages or franchises 415 Hyatt-branded properties, including the Hyatt, Park Hyatt, Hyatt Regency and Grand Hyatt chains, in 45 countries.
Source : STAR
[tags : malaysiahotelnews hotels malaysia resorts news travel tourism travel tourism news]
Friday, September 25, 2009
Hyatt shows how to damage a brand
The entire travel industry might learn some lessons from three Boston Hyatt hotels that fired their entire maid staffs and outsourced their positions to a third-party vendor at a lower cost.
“Looking for a sure-fire way to do a little damage to your brand? Follow these two simple steps,” wrote the Harvard Review.
1. Make the decision to fire a very important yet modestly paid sector of your work force. Fire the entire lot of them.
2. Outsource their positions to a third-party vendor who will bring in contractors to do their jobs at a lower cost. But -- and this is critical -- before you fire them, trick your workers into training the people who will replace them.
The hotel disputes this but the newspaper report said the maids were told they were training “vacation replacements.” This vacation, however, was permanent.
The Boston Globe newspaper reported that at last count, more than 584 comments had been posted on the newspaper site about Hyatt’s actions. The article has been among the site’s most e-mailed pieces of content. There were demonstrations and pledges from participants that they would never again stay at Hyatt.
“For a hotel, housekeeping is not trivial,” reports the Review.
Hyatt is a hospitality company, the report says. Hospitality companies rely on the currency of brand maintained by superior customer service -- to sustain and grow their businesses.
“Is this the way you'd want your management treating your fellow workers? Would this inspire you to go ‘above and beyond’ for your customers? To do your job at its highest level?” the report asks.
The lesson here: think about the way your actions will be perceived by all your stakeholders before you take them. Will these actions affect the way your customers feel about you? Might they impact worker morale?
How will they look on the "most-emailed" list of your local paper?
Source : TravelMole
[tags : malaysiahotelnews hotels malaysia resorts news travel tourism travel tourism news]
Tuesday, July 14, 2009
Grand Hyatt Kuala Lumpur - Opening 2010
The Brunei Investment Agency will develop the 40-storey five-star hotel, which may cost about RM360 million, industry executives estimated, if it sticks to a plan to have 450 rooms
THE Brunei Investment Agency, one of the world's largest sovereign wealth funds with assets of US$30 billion (RM97.2 billion), has finally been given the green light to develop the Grand Hyatt hotel on Jalan Pinang, Kuala Lumpur.
Business Times was informed that the proposal, which was submitted in 2005, was approved in late November 2007, after several amendments to its original proposal had been made.
Brunei Investment Agency official Suharafadzil Yusof when contacted said the project had been approved.
However, he declined to say when work will start or when the project will be ready. Apart from a 40-storey five-star hotel, the building will also house service apartments and offices.
The hotel alone may cost about RM360 million, industry executives estimated, if it sticks to a plan to have 450 rooms.
There was also no response to Business Times' query from Hyatt International's office in Singapore.
Industry experts say that if construction begins immediately, it could take anything between 30 and 36 months to be ready.
This means that the hotel may be operational in 2010.
In a press release put out in 2007, it was reported that international destination-design firm Wimberly Allison Tong & Goo (WATG) served as the design architect, together with local firm GDP Architects.
WATG did not reply to e-mail queries.
The 2007 release said that the hotel lobby is located at the top of the building and guests at the lobby will have an impressive 360-degree view of downtown KL.
The project is slated to open to the public in December 2010, the statement said.
Earlier plans to open a Grand Hyatt Duta came to an end as the project was never completed.
The Hyatt Group in 1994 gave the contract to develop the RM570 million Grand Hyatt Duta to Kuala Lumpur Landmark Sdn Bhd, a subsidiary of Olympia Industries Bhd.
Mycom Bhd, the holding company of Olympia, then teamed up with Kuala Lumpur Landmark to develop a 52-storey building to house its headquarters and the hotel.
However, construction was halted in July 1998, when the group encountered financial difficulties during the 1997/1998 economic downturn.
The Grand Hyatt Duta was to have been completed in 1997. Until today, the hotel at the corner of Jalan Sultan Ismail and Jalan Ampang remains partly completed. The Hyatt Group is no longer associated with the project.
The Hyatt Group also operates the Hyatt Regency Kinabalu, Hyatt Regency Johor Baru and Hyatt Regency Kuantan Resort.
The Seattle office of international destination design firm Wimberly Allison Tong & Goo (WATG) is the design architect for the Grand Hyatt Kuala Lumpur, a 40-story five-star hotel and mixed-use development in downtown Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
One of the more notable design features of the project will be the hotel lobby. Instead of being on the ground level, it will be at the top of the building. When guests enter the building to check in, they will ride the express lifts to the lobby where impressive 360-degree views of downtown Kuala Lumpur will greet them.
“We are thrilled to be working on this exciting urban-core hospitality project,” said Cynthia Jacobs, vice president of WATG and lead architect on the project. “The upside-down hotel concept will truly enhance the guest experience.”
The building will also hold service apartments and offices. The contemporary hotel is currently in the design development phase, and is scheduled to open to the public in December of 2010. The architect of record is Kuala Lumpur-based GDP Architects and the interior design is done by Bilkey Llinas Design Ltd. out of Hong Kong.
Since its founding in 1945, WATG has specialized in hospitality, leisure and entertainment design from its offices in Seattle, Honolulu, Irvine, Orlando, Singapore and London. The firm is best known for such internationally-acclaimed projects as The Venetian Resort-Hotel-Casino, Las Vegas; Atlantis Paradise Island, Paradise Island, Bahamas; The Ritz-Carlton, Bali; the Four Seasons in Mexico City and Tokyo, Hyatt Regency Kauai Resort & Spa, Poipu Beach, Kauai; Four Seasons Resort Maui at Wailea, Maui; Hotel Bora Bora, French Polynesia; Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort and Spa, Walt Disney World Resort, Lake Buena Vista; The Ritz-Carlton, Huntington Hotel & Spa, Pasadena; and Hyatt Regency Huntington Beach. For more information, visit www.watg.com.
Construction Site : Jalan Pinang, next to Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre (10 March 2009)
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Source : Skyscrapercity
[tags : malaysiahotelnews hotels malaysia resorts news travel tourism travel tourism news]
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
First Hotel to use TWITTER
Hyatt Hotels & Resorts has found a use for Twitter that is so simple and obvious that I'm amazed no other major hotelier has already tried it.
@HyattConcierge launched today as what is purportedly the hotel industry's first Twitter-based virtual concierge.
The account is being staffed 24/7 by specially trained agents within the corporate customer service group who are available to assist with typical concierge fare like spa appointments, golf outings and dinner reservations. @HyattConcierge will also field assorted guest complaints and queries.
"This is just another place for [customer service agents] to do what they do best," says Farley Kern, Hyatt's director of brand public relations. "All of the Twitter etiquette and language are all just conventions, the same way someone needs to learn to use e-mail."
Kern stresses that the account will not be a promotional vehicle, as is the case with the vast majority of hotelier Twitter accounts. "We wanted to have a presence on Twitter that was about our guests and for our guests and designed around our guests, as opposed to having a presence on Twitter just for the sake of being on Twitter," Kern says.
That's certainly not to disparage the dozens of other Hyatt tweeters, many of which are managed at the property level and are well maintained. @HyattConcierge, however, is an entirely different concept.
My main concern as a Twitter user myself is that the best Twitter accounts speak with unique, personal voices, even when they represent large businesses like hotels. (There is no better example of this than @LuxorLV, who I feel like I know on a personal level, even though we've never met.) It's impossible to create that kind of real voice when many people are managing the same account.
Nevertheless, that's a minor quibble with an otherwise outstanding idea. Can't wait to see how many competitors mimic it—and just how quickly they do.
Source : Hotelsmag
[tags : malaysiahotelnews hotels malaysia resorts news travel tourism travel tourism news]
@HyattConcierge launched today as what is purportedly the hotel industry's first Twitter-based virtual concierge.
The account is being staffed 24/7 by specially trained agents within the corporate customer service group who are available to assist with typical concierge fare like spa appointments, golf outings and dinner reservations. @HyattConcierge will also field assorted guest complaints and queries.
"This is just another place for [customer service agents] to do what they do best," says Farley Kern, Hyatt's director of brand public relations. "All of the Twitter etiquette and language are all just conventions, the same way someone needs to learn to use e-mail."
Kern stresses that the account will not be a promotional vehicle, as is the case with the vast majority of hotelier Twitter accounts. "We wanted to have a presence on Twitter that was about our guests and for our guests and designed around our guests, as opposed to having a presence on Twitter just for the sake of being on Twitter," Kern says.
That's certainly not to disparage the dozens of other Hyatt tweeters, many of which are managed at the property level and are well maintained. @HyattConcierge, however, is an entirely different concept.
My main concern as a Twitter user myself is that the best Twitter accounts speak with unique, personal voices, even when they represent large businesses like hotels. (There is no better example of this than @LuxorLV, who I feel like I know on a personal level, even though we've never met.) It's impossible to create that kind of real voice when many people are managing the same account.
Nevertheless, that's a minor quibble with an otherwise outstanding idea. Can't wait to see how many competitors mimic it—and just how quickly they do.
Source : Hotelsmag
[tags : malaysiahotelnews hotels malaysia resorts news travel tourism travel tourism news]
Wednesday, November 22, 2006
Hyatt's BlackBerry Balm
"BlackBerry Thumb" sparks new form of hand massage
(Reuters) - Sore thumbs after spending hours on a hand-held e-mail device? Sounds like a case of "BlackBerry Thumb" -- but help is at hand.
Corporate spa director Kyra Johnson said guests began asking masseurs to spend more time on their hands and arms because of the growing popularity of PDA (personal digital assistant) devices like BlackBerrys and Treos.
The 30-minute massage, that costs about $30, begins with heat treatment and uses a "BlackBerry Balm." It "focuses on counteracting tension on various hand and arm muscles, specifically in the thumbs and overworked wrists," according to a Hyatt statement.
The American Physical Therapy Association recently recognized BlackBerry Thumb as an official work place malady -- a stress-related injury due to over-use of any PDA or smartphone.
Ontario-based Research IN Motion Ltd's BlackBerry became a techological must-have in the late 1990s as a tool that delivers e-mail to users on the move. It is jokingly called a "CrackBerry" by many users.
Professor Alan Hedge, an ergonomics specialist at Cornell University in New York state, said the condition is caused by "highly repetitive, forceful thumb movements with the thumbs held back from the palms."
The symptoms are pain in the thumb and region around the base of the thumb and hand. Treatment typically consists of resting or strapping the thumb, anti-inflammatory medicines, cortisone injections and, as a last resort, surgery.
To read complete article, Click Here
News Source : Ehotelier
[tags : malaysiahotelnews hotels malaysia resorts news]
(Reuters) - Sore thumbs after spending hours on a hand-held e-mail device? Sounds like a case of "BlackBerry Thumb" -- but help is at hand.
The Hyatt hotel chain found so many of their business travelers were
complaining of hand and arm discomfort that they have introduced a special "BlackBerry Balm" hand massage at most of their North American spas.
Corporate spa director Kyra Johnson said guests began asking masseurs to spend more time on their hands and arms because of the growing popularity of PDA (personal digital assistant) devices like BlackBerrys and Treos.
The 30-minute massage, that costs about $30, begins with heat treatment and uses a "BlackBerry Balm." It "focuses on counteracting tension on various hand and arm muscles, specifically in the thumbs and overworked wrists," according to a Hyatt statement.
The American Physical Therapy Association recently recognized BlackBerry Thumb as an official work place malady -- a stress-related injury due to over-use of any PDA or smartphone.
Ontario-based Research IN Motion Ltd's BlackBerry became a techological must-have in the late 1990s as a tool that delivers e-mail to users on the move. It is jokingly called a "CrackBerry" by many users.
Professor Alan Hedge, an ergonomics specialist at Cornell University in New York state, said the condition is caused by "highly repetitive, forceful thumb movements with the thumbs held back from the palms."
The symptoms are pain in the thumb and region around the base of the thumb and hand. Treatment typically consists of resting or strapping the thumb, anti-inflammatory medicines, cortisone injections and, as a last resort, surgery.
To read complete article, Click Here
News Source : Ehotelier
[tags : malaysiahotelnews hotels malaysia resorts news]
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